Two competing plans to redevelop an empty tract of downtown land known as LeBreton Flats include an arena, a light rail transit (LRT) line, and a library.
Last week, developers Devcore Canderel DLS and RendezVous LeBreton Group pitched different designs to transform the formerly industrial land into an attractive destination for Ottawans and tourists.
Both visions for LeBreton could mean a new neighbourhood, jobs, and entertainment and education venues for Ottawa’s large student population.
Devcore’s proposal, titled “LeBreton Re-Imagined,” would feature a planetarium, several museums, a skate park, and a skydiving wind tunnel.
Ritchard Brisbin, an architect for Devcore’s plan, said the proposal would offer several opportunities for student jobs.
“All of those places need people to run them. They need guides [and] people behind the counters,” he said. “I think as a student, there’s an intriguing collection of things to offer anybody who’s looking for full-time or part-time employment.”
The proposal also includes a “student village” complete with housing, a grocery store, and a bistro, according to Brisbin. This area would begin construction in 2020 during the second phase of the plan, he said.
A science museum showcasing federal artifacts and a multimedia museum focusing on Canada’s journalism and communications history are also part of the plan.
“All of these things are public destinations that serve both the city and the nation’s capital in terms of tourism,” he said. “Not to denigrate the competition—I fully respect what [RendezVous] is doing—but what they’re doing is largely condominium development.”
RendezVous is proposing “IllumiNATION LeBreton,” which aims to build neighbourhoods in LeBreton with affordable housing.
Barry Hobin, an architect for IllumiNATION LeBreton, said these housing developments aren’t “specifically targeted towards students, but doesn’t necessarily exclude them.”
Hobin said RendezVous also constructs student housing, including a Sandy Hill residence on Laurier Avenue.
“It’s much more structured . . . with tons of amenities built into it as opposed to your typical condo apartment where people are renting out to students,” he said.
Hobin noted there is potential to build these types of student houses in LeBreton, and said the area “might even have more that’s attractive to students than Little Italy.”
Hobin said he thinks Devcore “threw in” an arena to their design to compete with RendezVous.
“The other [proposal] clearly added an arena to muddy the waters in terms of how they’re perceived. They don’t have a hockey team,” he said.
Hobin also explained IllumiNATION LeBreton will “animate” the existing LeBreton land features, including making a Rideau Canal-style waterway.
“We start from a position that says, ‘let’s rebuild this thing in a way that recognizes the river and sees ourselves as a river city . . . Let’s create a public square around that,’” he said.
“We’re trying to build the site up and create a national prominence from what its history is and what the features are,” he added.
The National Capital Commission (NCC), the federal body administering federally-owned land in Ottawa, will be responsible for choosing the winning design. Members of the public can voice their opinions on its website about the designs until Feb. 8.
Roger Picton, a Trent University professor studying the development of LeBreton, said he has criticisms of both proposals.
“In general, these city developments tend to favour a type of condominium development that leans towards the upscale,” Picton said on the affordable housing pitch. “I have questions around that and the processes as well.”
He said he is concerned about the NCC giving control to one team for the LeBreton development.
“I’m very aware of the fact that there’s a risk inherent to having that whole chunk of land developed by one developer,” he said. “If one developer does the whole thing, there’s more potential to make a mistake. How do you learn from your mistakes if the control is given to one particular development?”
